1989 Montana Grizzlies football team

The 1989 Montana Grizzlies football team represented the University of Montana in the 1989 NCAA Division I-AA football season as a member of the Big Sky Conference. The Grizzlies were led by fourth-year head coach Don Read, played their home games at Washington–Grizzly Stadium and finished the season with a record of eleven wins and three losses (11–3, 7–1 Big Sky).

1989 Montana Grizzlies football
NCAA Division I-AA Semifinal, L 15–45 vs. Georgia Southern
Conference	Big Sky Conference
Record	11–3 (7–1 Big Sky)
Head coach	Don Read (4th season)
Offensive coordinator	Tommy Lee (4th season)
Home stadium	Washington–Grizzly Stadium
Seasons ← 1988 1990 →

1989 Big Sky Conference football standings

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. T–4 Idaho $^	8	–	0	–	0			9	–	3	–	0
No. 6 Montana ^	7	–	1	–	0			11	–	3	–	0
No. 19 Nevada	5	–	3	–	0			7	–	4	–	0
Boise State	5	–	3	–	0			6	–	5	–	0
Eastern Washington	4	–	4	–	0			4	–	6	–	0
Northern Arizona	2	–	6	–	0			3	–	8	–	0
Montana State	2	–	6	–	0			4	–	7	–	0
Idaho State	2	–	6	–	0			3	–	7	–	0
Weber State	1	–	7	–	0			3	–	8	–	0
$ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant Rankings from NCAA Division I-AA Poll

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Rank	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 2	Eastern New Mexico*		Washington–Grizzly Stadium Missoula, MT	W 41–15	7,614	[1]
September 9	at Fresno State*		Bulldog Stadium Fresno, CA	L 37–52	33,710	[2]
September 16	No. 3 (D-II) Portland State*		Washington–Grizzly Stadium Missoula, MT	W 30–21	10,155	[3]
September 23	at Eastern Washington		Joe Albi Stadium Spokane, WA (rivalry)	W 22–16	7,365	[4]
September 28	at Idaho		Kibbie Dome Moscow, ID (rivalry)	L 24–30	13,000	[5][6]
October 7	Weber State		Washington–Grizzly Stadium Missoula, MT	W 31–6	13,589	[7]
October 14	Nevada	No. T–20	Washington–Grizzly Stadium Missoula, MT	W 40–22	9,465	[8]
October 21	at Northern Arizona	No. 20	Walkup Skydome Flagstaff, AZ	W 38–14	8,520	[9]
October 28	No. 6 Boise State	No. 14	Washington–Grizzly Stadium Missoula, MT	W 48–13	10,388	[10]
November 4	at Montana State	No. 9	Reno H. Sales Stadium Bozeman, MT (rivalry)	W 17–2	14,227	[11]
November 11	Idaho State	No. 8	Washington–Grizzly Stadium Missoula, MT	W 35–21	9,021	[12]
November 25	No. 17 Jackson State*	No. 6	Washington–Grizzly Stadium Missoula, MT (Division I-AA First Round)	W 48–7	11,854	[13]
December 2	No. 15 Eastern Illinois*	No. 6	Washington–Grizzly Stadium Missoula, MT (NCAA Division I-AA Quarterfinal)	W 25–19	12,285	[14]
December 9	at No. 1 Georgia Southern*	No. 6	Paulson Stadium Statesboro, GA (NCAA Division I-AA Semifinal)	L 15–45	10,421	[15]
*Non-conference game Rankings from NCAA Division I-AA Football Committee Poll released prior to the game

^[16]

References

1. "Bennett sparks Griz". The Billings Gazette. September 3, 1989. Retrieved January 5, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
2. "Explosive Fresno outlasts Grizzlies". Great Falls Tribune. September 10, 1989. Retrieved January 5, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
3. "The grudge match goes to Grizzlies". The Missoulian. September 17, 1989. Retrieved January 5, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
4. "Grizzlies knock out EWU". The Spokesman-Review. September 24, 1989. Retrieved January 5, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
5. Stalwick, Howie (September 29, 1989). "Idaho bags game Grizzlies". Spokane Chronicle. (Washington). p. B1.
6. Schulte, Chris (September 29, 1989). "Friesz, defense help UI short-circuit Griz". Idahonian. (Moscow). p. 1B.
7. "Montana rides Bennett's passing, Weber State errors by 31–6 victory". The Montana Standard. October 8, 1989. Retrieved January 5, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
8. "Griz start fast, finish off Reno". The Missoulian. October 15, 1989. Retrieved January 5, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
9. "Grizzlies recover for 38–14 victory". The Billings Gazette. October 22, 1989. Retrieved January 5, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
10. "Grrrrrrizzlies! Montana intercepts 10 passes, belts No. 6 Boise State". The Montana Standard. October 29, 1989. Retrieved January 5, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
11. "Grizzlies fight off wind, MSU for win". Great Falls Tribune. November 5, 1989. Retrieved January 5, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
12. "Grizzlies win, wait for playoff invitation". The Billings Gazette. November 12, 1989. Retrieved January 5, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
13. "UM, you are in quarterfinals". The Montana Standard. November 26, 1989. Retrieved August 3, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
14. "Grizzlies down Eastern Illinois 25–19". The Independent-Record. December 3, 1989. Retrieved January 5, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
15. "Grizzlies' hopes die in Dixie". The Montana Standard. December 10, 1989. Retrieved January 5, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
16. "Montana yearly results". College Football Data Warehouse. Archived from the original on December 15, 2013. Retrieved August 7, 2013.